


Where the Dice Land

by strangerahne



Series: Writing Exchange Pieces! [3]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, D&D AU, F/M, Kwamis are familiars, ML Secret Santa, Magic, Other, Pathfinder AU, will update tags as I go
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-13
Updated: 2021-03-06
Packaged: 2021-03-18 09:42:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,602
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28741191
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/strangerahne/pseuds/strangerahne
Summary: Adrien sets out on the adventure of a lifetime in his quest to find his missing family. He must party up with 6 strangers to find the answers he is looking for, and maybe love along the way.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Series: Writing Exchange Pieces! [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2191671
Comments: 9
Kudos: 12





	1. And So It Begins.

**Author's Note:**

> This was supposed to be a one-shot for Amarilly for the Miraculous Secret Santa 2020 exchange, and now it is a chapter fic.  
> I hope you enjoy, and I will do my best to get the next chapter out soon. :)

Adrien couldn’t deny the fact that he was really in deep water this time. He considered himself to be barely competent enough to wield his sword properly and was still struggling to master his spells; he was unsure how he would do both at the same time. No, he was definitely not cut out to be a magus. Honestly, he was unsure why he had bothered to train for so long. He really would feel better if this old man had gone to someone else. But he didn’t, and now here Adrien was. An old beastmaster who the villagers called Fu had bought him lunch and come to him with a proposition. 

“So, let me get this straight,” Adrien said between bites, wiping the grease from his face. “You want to pay me to go on a quest to get some of your familiars back from some people who stole them?”

“They are more than just my animal companions,” the old man explained. “They are precious and magical beings. Each blessed in their own way. And yes, I will pay you. I would ask that you also take my granddaughter with you. She can help explain more.”

“Okay, so why can’t she go on her own then?” Adrien asked. He was beginning to wonder if this was all going to be worth it. 

“Because she can’t go into the forest where the Name Taker is on her own. She needs a party, and I think you would be a wonderful addition to it.”

Adrien looked down at the man, his eyes now shining with determination. He reached up to rub the back of his neck while he thought it over. On one hand, the Name Taker would get him a hefty reward if he could come back, on the other was the question of  _ if _ he'd come back. He didn’t even have any kind of amplifier or familiar to help boost his magic, and even then his sword skills didn’t guarantee his return. 

“So let’s say I agree to help you, what do I need to do here?” Adrien looked up. The old man’s eyes shone with hope. 

“Please meet with me at my house tomorrow night for dinner, we will discuss more details there.” The old man slid a piece of paper with directions to his house just outside of town and shuffled out. 

_ What an odd man _ , Adrien thought to himself, taking one last bite of bread before heading out himself to find shelter for the night.

Adrien had once been a part of a prestigious family, but once his mother had died, his father went mad and disappeared. His older brother had gone out first to find their father, but it had been almost a year. And with no contact from his brother, Adrien knew he would have to venture out into the world. He left his most trusted family friend in charge of the estate while he went out to search for what happened to his father. It was less that he wanted him back in his life, and more that he just wanted the closure. If all went well, he would find his brother along the way, but he was braced for the worst. As he reminisced fondly of the family he once had and the luxurious bed that once waited for him, he trudged along to find an inn of good enough reputation to stay the night. 

*****

The next evening, Adrien found himself at a small homestead. The house itself was carved out in the hillside, with a garden placed to the side near a small creek. Small creatures ran around everywhere. He saw a small black cat lazing next to a turtle. Both animals looked at him with bright eyes.  _ Sentient _ eyes. Rather than risk somehow offending the animals — and, by extension, the old man — Adrien simply bowed his head and moved on towards the house. 

Making his way up to the house, he noticed he was not the only one there. Around a circular table set outside in the midsummer evening were six others that looked to be his age and the old man. He walked over to the empty seat and noticed that what would normally be a lively scene was strangely quiet. Adrien once again found himself questioning the choices that had landed him here. He sat down and took in his surroundings. To his left was a short young woman in red and gold. She had a rapier and a solemn look on her face. She seemed familiar. To his right was a young man in green. A shield was strapped to the back of his chair. Studying his tablemates' expressions, none of them seemed to be completely sure of the reason for their being there. With one exception: the young woman with her hair in two low pigtails. She sat next to the old man, draped in a grey cloak and projecting an aura of authority. Adrien could tell just from one look that she was a natural-born leader, and yet kindness shined in her eyes, making him wonder even more about who she could be.

“Uh-hum,” the old man cleared his throat. “Now that we are all assembled, we can get started. As you all know, I have gathered you here to help find the people who kidnapped some of my animal companions, as well as some of my friends.”

Adrien looked around at the rest of the table. Everyone was paying attention to the old man — all but the pigtailed young woman who stared straight at him. He blushed briefly before turning his attention back to the old man.

“Now, for the purpose of this quest, you will need to take on the Name Taker. They are an old fey who lives in the woods. I believe the best way for you all to come back is to use a codename that is not connected to your being. That way the Name Taker can not take your true name. We will start introductions with my granddaughter here, while the rest of you think of your codenames.”

The old man waved to the young pigtailed woman next to him. She nodded to him briefly before standing.

“Hello, everyone. My name is Ladybug. I am a conjurer. One of the people that was taken from us was my sister,” Ladybug turned and looked directly at Adrien again. He felt his heart leap up into his throat at the intensity of her gaze. “I will not rest until we have her, and the others back. I look forward to working with you all.”

Ladybug sat back down, and the young woman next to her stood up. She had dark skin and wavy auburn hair. She was dressed in hues of orange and white, and a bright smile on her face indicated her excitement for being there.

“Hello,” the new young woman started, “I am Rena Rouge. I am an illusionist. I am honored to be chosen for this quest and look forward to working with you all. I am a decent cook, and I am good at sniffing out leads and getting to the bottom of a story.”

She sat back down, almost unsure of if she should have continued. She looked at the next person: a man in dark blues and blacks with blue hair. He stood up and looked around the table for a moment before speaking.

“Hi, I’m Vipereon. I am a bard,” the young man said. “I speak more with music than words.” He then sat down silent again.

Next up was the young man dressed in green sitting next to Adrien. He stood up and took a deep breath. 

“H-hey everyone, I am Carapace. It is totally chill to meet you guys. I am a Cleric of Shelyn. I hope I can help and protect everyone.” Carapace nodded once more before sitting down.

Adrien took a deep breath, unsure of exactly how this was going to go. He didn’t really have a nickname that he could go by. He looked down at his all-black attire, and a quick flash of the small cat he saw on the way in came to his mind. He stood up.

“Hello all, my name is Chat Noir. I am a magus and do fairly well with my sword. I am hoping that I can help on this quest and that maybe I can even get closer to finding answers of my own.”

Nodding, he bowed to the old man before sitting back down in his place. 

He then turned to look at the woman next to him. She stood and glanced around the table. 

“Hello, my name is Ryuko. I am a barbarian class. I am proficient in all weapons but prefer my rapier,” she explained. She then promptly sat down and looked to the woman to her left. 

The young blonde woman to Ryuko’s left was dressed in all black and yellow, with perfectly manicured nails. She  _ still  _ seemed as though she was unsure why she was even here in the first place. She let out a long sigh before standing up.

“You can call me Queen Bee,” she announced. “I am a witch. Yes, I know it rhymes with bitch, so come up with something more original.”

Queen Bee then sat back down and crossed her legs. They all stared back at the old man, having finished introductions. The old man nodded at the group and grabbed a whistle that hung around his neck, bringing it to his lips. He blew the whistle, but it appeared no one at the table could hear it. 

Adrien looked around and noticed his fellow party members were also confused — well, once again, all but one. All but Ladybug. She smiled at Adrien.

No, not at him, at something slightly above him. 

Adrien turned to look above his head and saw multiple small sprite-like creatures flying down to the table. There were so many of all kinds and different colors. 

The old man chuckled as he watched the others stare in awe at the sight in front of them. 

“Now, with all of you introduced, I will give you a gift. It is part of your payment, and also something to help you. As you may be able to tell, these are not normal sprites. These are a special kind of familiar called a kwami.” The old man reached out, and a green one landed on his hand, where it morphed into a small turtle that nuzzled him. “These kwami are as old as the lands and can give you guidance on your quest. I don’t assign them, however. They choose you.” 

With these last words, he smiled up at the group. 

Adrien watched in awe as the small flying creatures landed with their partnered party member and morphed. A red sprite landed on Ryuko and turned into a small dragon. It climbed up to her shoulder and sat proudly. Adrien could have sworn that he saw Ryuko’s face display a slight smirk at her dragon companion’s presence. An orange kwami landed on Rena Rouge’s hands, turning into a small fox. A yellow one landed on Queen Bee, becoming an unusually large bee. A teal kwami landed on Vipereon, turning itself into a calligraphy wyrm. 

Adrien looked back at the old man, who was whispering to the turtle. He then held his hand out, and the turtle turned back into the small green sprite before landing on Carapace and turning back into its turtle form.

A red sprite sat on Ladybug’s shoulder, not morphing into anything, but just resting there comfortably. Everyone seemed to have a kwami but him. 

Finally, a small black sprite hovered in front of him at eye level. Adrien sat and just stared at it. He slowly held a hand out, where it landed before turning into the small black cat sith that he had seen on his way in. 

“Hi there, the name’s Plagg,” the cat said. 

“They talk?” Adrien exclaimed. 

The old man just chuckled, before answering, “Yes, and that one never seems to shut up, especially if it is about cheese. Here, now let’s eat dinner while we go over the details. You will all need to set out tomorrow. 

Adrien found himself thinking for the millionth time since meeting this old man,  _ Just what have I gotten myself into _ ?

He looked down at his kwami, the small cat form snacking away at the cheese that was on the table. He wasn’t sure where this was going, but he had a feeling that the adventure of a lifetime was waiting just ahead for him.


	2. One Step at a Time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As usual, thanks to my beta readers!  
> Kjhwave  
> Thrawn  
> BubsGirl291  
> and ShamlesslyRomantic

Adrien was not overly fond of onion stew, but it was all that Fu had prepared ahead of time. He claimed it was filled with extra properties that would help the party on their adventure. Fu had also laid out bedrolls for the party inside a small barn embedded in the same hillside as the house. It was really more of a second house than a barn, but the old man had insisted that despite the rather nice furniture and the fireplace, it was indeed a barn. Adrien had known all his life that it was better to just go with what a magical old man said than to argue with him, and it seemed the rest of the party felt similarly. 

It was quiet that night. While he had talked quite a bit beforehand with his kwami, once everyone settled down, Plagg suddenly curled up on his chest and began to purr gently. He insisted on Adrien being quiet, for he “needed his beauty rest.” The darkness of the barn’s ceiling was startling. It was so devoid of light that Adrien decided it must be magicked somehow. Not even the soft glow of the smoldering fire in the fireplace could put a dent in the ever-growing black. The more he stared, the more it seemed to be moving, almost as if it were breathing. Pushing aside thoughts about what sort of creature could be there, Adrien attempted to drift off, letting the gentle rhythm of his kwami’s breathing lull him into a deep sleep.

_ A figure dressed in a light pink gown came drifting out of the woods, pulling back vines and willow branches as she made her way gently over a stream. She seemed familiar. Her hair was dark, skin fair. But when she looked up, she had no face. She didn’t seem to notice Adrien standing across the stream from her. Instead, she motioned back to someone behind her. Her laugh rang out twinkling like bells in the wind. She stopped and listened keenly, like a deer waiting for the sounds of a predator. A hand reached through the vines and grabbed hers, pulling her into their shadow. Adrien moved to follow her, but she turned towards him, her facelessness directed his way - as if seeing him for the first time - stopping him.  _ **_Save us, Adrien. Hurry, for the beast is hungry and never sleeps_ ** .

Adrien sat up quickly, breathing heavily as the lingering feeling of the dream settled into his stomach. The panic in her voice haunted him. Who was she? Who was us? Before many more questions could run through his head, the body next to him stirred. The cleric stretched and let out a long yawn before looking up at him. 

“Chat Noir, right?” he asked, slowly sitting up while rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

“Yeah, and your name is Carapace?” Adrien confirmed. He was fairly certain he was correct. He'd always been good with names but didn’t want to make his new party companion feel weird.

“Yeah dude, I suppose that would be me.” 

The two sat in silence while the rest of the party woke up. Queen Bee seemed to be in a bad mood about the general idea of being awake, but Ryuko was up and packed before Adrien could really comprehend that she was moving. Did she pack it all last night, or was she just that efficient?

The delicious smell of bacon and a pastry of some kind wafted in through the windows, letting them all know that food was outside. The party got up and made thier way outside, finding Ladybug and Fu setting the table for everyone. There were even little plates next to each seat with various foods that corresponded with each of the kwamis’ favorites. It was obvious Fu cared deeply for them all, which only made Adrien more nervous about their quest. What would happen if they failed? 

“Hey, cat, you said you're a magus, correct?” Queen Bee’s acidic tone cut through his thoughts and brought him back to the present.

“Yeah,” Adrien replied, unsure of how to respond past that.

“Cool… well… Just… Ugh. Just make sure I don’t get hurt. I can do some cool and important stuff, but not if everyone doesn’t play their part, okay?” she huffed, obviously annoyed.

Queen Bee flipped her hair and walked past him and sat down at the table by her kwami. Adrien tried to remember if he did anything to annoy her within the last 24 hours but couldn’t think of anything. He'd been just as polite to her as to anyone else. 

“Plagg,” he started, turning to the floating black kwami near him, “did I do something wrong?”

“Beats me, Sunshine,” the kwami replied, shrugging. “Maybe she's just bad at saying hello.” The kwami didn’t bother to say more, opting instead to float over to the small plate on the table that was piled with cheese. 

Breakfast passed by rather uneventfully. The group was given a map and a rundown of the forest area they would be heading to. Ladybug made sure to pass out various charms and supplies that each person might need while Fu explained more details. Adrien had done his best to really pay attention, but each time he thought he was looking at the map or was completely focused on what was being said, he quickly found himself lost in Ladybug’s deep blue eyes. They shined with a fierce determination but also housed a deep sadness—one that looked all too similar to his own. 

He remembered her words from the night before, about how her sister was one of the people they were out to rescue. He felt an ache in his chest at the thought of his own lost family. Unlike his mother, though, there was still a possibility her sister could come home.

*****

The group had only been moving for a little more than a day when they came to a clearing. It was just big enough for a camp, and far enough off the road that they didn’t have to worry about being spotted. It wasn’t that this was a stealth mission really. It was just that the fewer people they interacted with or who might know their real names, the better. Adrien volunteered for firewood duty and walked off while the others went about setting up camp. 

“You know, generally you would want to talk to your party members,” Plagg chided. The floating kwami shifted to a cat sith and walked alongside him.

Adrien rolled his eyes. “I- I’ve never really had a party to travel with, let alone friends, so I'm kind of new to this stuff,” he confessed. “Plus the idea of talking to some of them is terrifying. Queen Bee is confusing, Ryuko is so confident and intimidating—I don’t even know where to start.”

“Well,” a light and cheerful voice chimed in behind him, “why don’t you practice?” 

Adrien turned and watched as Ladybug hopped out of a tree from behind him. He felt heat rise to his cheeks. He wasn’t sure if he was more embarrassed that she had heard what he said, or that he hadn’t noticed her coming up from behind him. 

“H-hi. I, uh, are you getting firewood too?” he asked her. Mentally, he kicked himself for stumbling over his words and did his best to quickly calm the nerves flaring inside his chest. 

“Yeah, I figured it's better to do stuff in groups — you know, in case you need help or anything.” She smiled at him and again he found the sparkle in her eyes to be absolutely mesmerizing. 

“Yeah,” he smiled back, “that sounds like a good idea.” 

The two began gathering bits of firewood in silence. Adrien tried to think of a good way to start a conversation with her. He looked over at her, trying to think of something to say. The soft glow of the twilight through the treetops illuminated her face, daring him to memorize all her features. Her smile had now faded to a rather melancholic one, and her eyes had that clouded sadness again.

“I can kind of understand,” he blurted out without thinking much. His free hand went straight to the back of his neck. 

Ladybug stopped what she was doing and turned to him, her face stating the question that didn’t need to be said out loud.

“Uh, I mean, my-my brother, and my father too, and my mother… they are all gone. Well, my mother is  _ gone _ gone, but I don’t know where my father or brother are,” he rambled. Why was he rambling? This was not a subject to bring up. What was he doing? He had been perfectly fine in town, but now, face to face with an amazing, beautiful woman in the woods and all sense went out the door. What was wrong with him?

Ladybug’s scrunched-up face relaxed a bit before her sad smile reappeared, “Oh. I'm so sorry that happened. I suppose it's nice to know that you aren’t alone in these kinds of matters.” 

He no longer knew what to say, and elected to just nod in response. Thankfully, Ladybug seemed to have more to say.

“That was part of why I volunteered to get firewood, too.” She looked up at the sky, a slight hitch in her voice as she continued. “My sister, she trained as a ranger when we were kids, so she would always do this kind of stuff to help set up camp. Our mother taught her how to find the best branches and set snares for food.”

“It helps you feel close,” Adrien stated. He walked closer to her, hoping that she wouldn’t be more weirded out than she probably already was. He bent down to pick up more sticks, unsure if he was making things worse or not. “When we were little my brother taught me the constellations and how to map the stars. He always dreamed of going sailing off on some big adventure. Because of that, I love sleeping out under the stars. Helps me feel like he's closer.”

“That's understandable,” Ladybug said quietly. She reached her hand out and brushed it through his hair, pulling back a small twig that had somehow gotten stuck. 

Adrien felt his cheeks go red and his eyes widen. 

“I'll see you back at camp then, Chat Noir.” 

She walked quietly back towards camp, almost as if she wasn’t even touching the ground. Unable to fully process what had happened, he just stood shocked at the conversation they had had. 

“Smooth, Romeo.” Adrien looked up to see the small Cat Sith sitting in the tree next to him, gently grooming himself. His eyes narrowed at his kwami as it shifted back and floated down to his face. “You know, if you want to get further along with any kind of friendship, let alone something more, you gotta work on not bringing up dead relatives.” 

The kwami lazily circled his head, his words salt on an embarrassing wound. 

“Yeah, Plagg, that is really helpful,” he mumbled to himself, picking up a few more sticks before heading back to camp.

Once back to camp, he sat down by his bedroll feeling discouraged. He tried not to let himself spiral about what he could have done, or feel too badly about his sudden lack of social skills. He had always been rather sociable back home. But that was with children that were deemed acceptable by his father. They weren’t really his friends, just people he had to keep happy to stay in his father’s good graces. Sure, he could give a moving speech and was an expert about how to behave at any kind of formal function, but bonding with a party like this was intimidating. What if he messed up? What if they didn’t like him enough to trust him in battle? What would he do then? He took one last sigh and looked over at his kwami. 

Plagg had flown away from Adrien’s general melancholy to sit with the turtle kwami. They appeared to be talking away in their own language. Adrien took it as a sign to try a little harder. If his prickly little kwami could make friends, so could he.

Figuring he should follow Plagg’s example, he walked over to Carapace.

“Hey, dude!” Carapace exclaimed, “I was just about to come and sit over there with you.”

“You were?” Adrien asked.

“Of course! You seem super chill,” Carapace replied. “Here, want an apple?” He reached into the pack next to him and pulled one out.

Adrien couldn’t help the smile that spread across his face. “That would be great.”

He sat next to the cleric and pulled a small knife out to slice the apple. 

“So, Chat Noir, tell me a bit about yourself. How did you become a magus?” His companion asked before taking a bite out of his own apple. 

“Uh, well, that,” Adrien chuckled. “Funny story. So my father declared that I had to be a class that dealt in magic if I was to do anything other than take over the family business. He figured that if my brother and I picked classes that centered around magic, we would be too weak to go on any kind of adventures and instead would have to stay home and work for him.” Carapace let out a small chuckle, making Adrien smile. “Well, I don’t think he had counted on me doing more research after watching my older brother go through school and having to make his choice. And I knew basic swordplay, so I chose magus.”

“You chose your class just to spite your old man,” Carapace stated, sounding more impressed than amused.

“Yep. I'm honestly not even that good at it. I'm rather average, really. I can understand how the more complicated spells work, and even the theory behind some more advanced fighting techniques.” Adrien looked down at his hands, a mix of frustration and acceptance on his face. “Just somewhere they get all jumbled and my limbs don’t do what I want them to.” 

Carapace threw his head back in laughter. Tears began to form in the corners of his eyes as he stopped. “Right on, my dude! Way to stick it to the man!” He wiped the tears away with one hand while extending the other out in a fist. 

Adrien looked at it, reluctant at first. A wide smile quickly broke out as he lifted his own fist to meet the green-clad cleric’s. The two went back to eating their apples, a comfortable almost-silence between them. Adrien saw Plagg give him a small smirk.

“Oh, man. Dude, like no one will believe me when I tell them that my friend became a magus just to spite their old man. Like, no one.” Carapace mumbled, almost to himself. 

Adrien felt his heart leap.  _ Friend _ . He had a friend. 


End file.
